The Apex Legends ping system is so brilliant that I've found myself trying to use it in just about every multiplayer game since. It's simple, it gets the point across without the need for any words, and most importantly, it's both easy and fast to do - perfect for when you're stuck in the middle of a firefight.

Given how much effort went into the ping system, one might expect that the entirety of Apex Legends has been designed with facilitating squad-play in mind, but unfortunately that's not the case. Adding people to your friends list is such a minor event that most players don't even notice the prompt, there is no real looking-for-group system, and up until recently there was also no simple way to stay together with a random team.

Thankfully, the most recent update has now finally added the "Stay as Squad" button. So if you ever find people you have great synergy with, you now no longer have to go through the lengthy process of adding them to your friend list, at which point you'd probably realize they're already in a new game, and then end up in a solo game yourself as well. A small change in the grand scheme of things, but certainly a step in a positive direction!

As for the future, you can soon expect to see punishments for people that leave mid-match. The details are still few and far between as the system was accidentally introduced and then immediately pulled back, but the idea is to discourage people from playing Apex Legends as a solo game, while still not punishing those that might have to leave on occasion.

Once more details become available I'll let you know, but until then make sure to give the new "Stay as Squad" option a chance. Have fun!